kleemeyer



Jan. 22, 1935. G. H. KLEEMEYER RACK Filed May 6, 1953 Patented Jan. 22, 1935 UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE.

1 Claim.

The present invention relates generally to a rack; and more particularly to a rack or stand for display purposes and which is readily movable, and at. the same time so arranged that individual supports may be adjusted to convenient and desired positions to meet the personal taste and desire of the user.

An object of the present invention is to provide a light, readily portable rack or stand for ornaments, which is economical to manufacture, and sufiiciently strong for the purpose intended.

Another object, of the invention is to provide a rack or stand with a plurality of individual shelves supported by cantilever action for ready removal, application and adjustment.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a rack or stand with supports for shelves, which supports frictionally engage with uprights whereby the supports may be readily raised or lowered and also angularly adjusted.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a novel shelf support for a rack or stand.

The above, other and further objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description, accompanying drawing and appended claim.

The accompanying drawing illustrates a racl; or stand embodying principles of the present invention, and the views thereof are as tollows:

Figure 1 is an elevational view of a rack or stand embodying principles ,of the present invention, showing in full lines the structure as a whole and also some of the individual shelves, and in dotted lines other positions of the shelves as adjusted.

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the rack of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially in the plane of line III-J11 of Fig. 1.

Figure 4 is an enlarged plan view, of the illustrated form of shelf support, showing in section an upright, and in dotted lines, a portion of the shelf applied to the support.

Figure 5 is a sectional view of a shelf support and shelf, taken substantially in the plane of line V-V of Fig. 4, with a fragmental portion of an upright illustrated.

The drawing will now be explained.

A stand or rack of the present invention comprises a plurality of uprights, and connecting members for arranging the uprights in polygonal form in plan, which may be triangular, rectangular or otherwise, as may be desired. The rack here illustrated is in the form of a tripod or triangular in plan.

The illustrated rack comprises three uprights 1, which have bends 2, immediate their heights and additional bends 3 near the top, for providing a structure of pleasing outline and oi desired stability. The rack is supported on rollers or 5 wheels 4, suitably secured in the lower ends of the uprights l for ready movability of the rack, so that it may be moved for cleaning purposes, decorating, or for any other purpose.

The uprights 1 are connected together in polygonal form, in the form of the invention here illustrated, by connecting members 5, Band 7. The plan view of the several connecting members 5, 6 and '7 is substantially that illustrated in Fig. 3 and these connecting members are preferably alike, except, of course, for length. Connecting members 5 include elongated body portions having at one end a circular portion 8 for surrounding an upright 1, which circular portion 8 terminates in ashort end 9. The opposite 20 end of the body member is provided with a bent portion 10 adapted to engage against an inner part of another of the uprights 1, and is pro vided with a short end 11. The members 5 are assembled by means of bolts or rivets 12 passing through registering apertures in the connecting members 5 and the overlapping ends 9 and 11. The connecting members 5, 6 and 7 are, therefore, clamped to the uprights 1. This manner of construction provides a light, rigid rack which does not become distorted by reason of the weight carried thereby, 'orby any force that may be applied to it for moving it.

Movably supported on the several series of connecting members 5, 6 and 7 are trays 13, 14 and 15, respectively. These trays, preferably, are removably supported by the connecting members and are adapted for receiving ornaments, such as potted plants, a goldfish bowl, as indicated at 16 in Fig. 1, and also for supporting a suspended jar or trough as indicated at 1'7 in Fig. 1. A fern or other plant might be planted in the pot l7.

Disposed on the uprights 1 are a plurality of individual shelf supports so arranged as to be vertically and angularly adjustable. These supports are indicated generally at A and all carry shelves, indicated generally at B, supported by cantilever action.

The shelf support A, herein illustrated, comprises two similar members, preferably formed of flat metallic stock. Each of the members forming a support A has a body portion or part 18, a substantially semi-cylindrical end portion 19 and an outturned foot portion 20, the latter being bent outwardly substantially at 90 to the body portion 18. The members are preferably made with the semi-cylindrical portion 19 of greater height than the body portion 18 to provide a hook 20, forwardly of the upright l on which the support is mounted, for a purpose to be later described. The extremities of the outturned feet 20 are provided with upstanding lugs 21 for engaging against the side margins of the supported shelf B. The two members comprising a support A, are removably secured together by means of a bolt 22 and knurled nut 23, which bolt passes through registering apertures in the members. In order to maintain the outer ends of the members of a support in alignment, a pin 28 may be inserted in the body 18 of one of the twomembers for engagement with an aperture in the body of the other member, when the members are assembled, with the body portion in back to back relation, as illustrated in Fig. 4.

The shelves B are illustrated as being pan-like in shape, and substantially rectangular in plan. Every shelf has a bottom 24 with an upstanding flange 25. The flange, at the front end of the shelf, when it is made rectangular in plan, may be inclined outwardly as at 26. A shelf B is attached to its support by tilting it sufiiciently so that a portion of the flange engages underneath the hook 20 of the support whereupon the shelf may then be lowered against the body portion 18 and the outstanding feet 20 and supported in cantilever manner by the shelf support. Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate the cantilever support of the shelves B.

A washer 27, of rubber or other suitable material, may be interposed between the registering semi-cylindrical portions 19 of the two members comprising a shelf support A, so as to afford tight frictonal engagement of the supports A with the uprights l.

Supporting the shelf supports A in the manner described, enables ready vertical and angular adjustment of the same merely by grasping a support and moving it by hand in the desired manner.

An advantage of the present invention resides in the fact that the shelves B may be of various sizes while all of the shelf supports A may be of the same size. The fact that the shelves B are supported by cantilever action, makes this possible.

Figure 2 illustrates some of the angular positions to which the shelves B may be moved, while Figure 1 illustrates some of the vertical positions that may be assumed by the shelves as desired.

A rack of the present invention finds ready use in florists shops, homes, and other places, for supporting ornaments, such as potted plants and the like. The fact that the rack is mounted on wheels, makes it possible to readily move it for cleaning the space underneath it, or for placing it in some desired position',*as place and convenience may dictate.

Instead of utilizing the connecting members 5, as herein described, for connecting together the uprights l in polygonal form, the trays 13, 14 and 15 may be directly attached to the uprights 1 by means ofscrews or bolts passing through suitably disposed apertures in the uprights and the trays. This construction may be less expensive, yet is one that is not quite so desirable from the viewpoint of rigidity and strength.

The rack or stand of the present invention is pyramidal in elevation made so by bending the uprights or standards at a plurality of points to provide a plurality of inwardly offset vertical portions, which portions define zones of decreasing cross-sectional area upwardly.

The invention has been described herein more or less precisely as to details, yet it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereby, as changes may be made in the arrangement and proportion of parts and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

The invention is claimed as follows:

A shelf support consisting of two members, each y member having a substantially semi-cylindrical portion at one end, a body extending away from said semi-cylindrical portion and an outtumed foot; said members being assembled in such manner that the semi-cylindrical portions cooperate to surround an upright and with thefeet extending in opposite directions; means clamping said semi-cylindrical portions in frictional engagement with an upright; and the bodies of the members being provided with cooperating means to maintain the outturned feet in horizontal alignment, said members having means adjacent the semicylindrical portions for hooking engagement with a shelf to prevent its displacement from the support.

GERTRUDE HARDER KLEEMEYER. 

